


Reminder

by RowanAndWitchcraft



Category: Made in Abyss (Anime)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon - Manga, Friendship, Gen, One Shot, Self-Doubt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-23
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:35:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21537574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RowanAndWitchcraft/pseuds/RowanAndWitchcraft
Summary: Reg reflects on all the times he has failed his friends.Fortunately, Riko intervenes.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 27





	Reminder

Reg sat alone in the small room. Both Riko and Nanachi were out, doing who-knows-what, but he certainly wasn't the one to tell them to do otherwise. Not after everything that had happened. Not after almost losing them both for not being there. Actually, it was all his own fault.

It smelled awful in there, and the space felt cramped around his body. Being there, in the depths of the Abyss, was one thing, but being there alone was completely different. He was lucky, he thought, for since he had woken up in Riko's room in the orphanage all that time ago he had never been alone; not really, at least. Not as he was feeling then.

His hands fidgeted on his lap, the sound of his metal fingers touching each other echoing from the walls. He felt uneasy. How long had they been out now? He remembered Nanachi saying she wanted to be alone --always putting that strong front up for everyone, when she was the most damaged one. The look in her eyes made him think about how useless he had been, was. And Riko... She never said an ugly word to him. She didn't harbour any hard feelings. She thought he was his friend and protector, but, to be honest, he didn't feel like he was either one. She hadn't blamed him; she never did. And that fact was beginning to make him mad.

Suddenly, he realized he was, in fact, pissed off. With himself, of course. Who else? He was the one at fault there. He had sworn to protect Riko. He had promised to her friends, to Leader, to her uncle the Black Whistle. And he had broken his word so many times already... Later on, when Nanachi had joined their little adventure club, he had another one to take care of. He prouded himself in protecting his two friends. They were allies, companions, family. But he had come out as a failure. Where was his pride now?

Images of the past began flashing in his head. His fist clenched, his eyes closed in bitter remembrance.

He could see Ozen that one time, when they thought she was their enemy. With one swing of her hand, Riko had flown to the opposite wall, and her face had been drenched in blood. He had truly panicked then. The Incinerator had proven dangerous, because as soon as The Unmovable Lord had sensed the danger, she had pointed the weapon towards the semi-conscious girl on the floor. Reg had had only a split second to divert the trajectory to avoid killing his friend on the spot. Sheer luck, actually.

They had trained after that incident at the Observatory Station. He had become stronger, more aware of his limits and even more determined to protect her, no matter the cost. But then they had arrived at the Fourth Layer, and his whole world had crumbled.

The shock of remembering the poisoned spine perforating her left hand made his body shook in the pestilent room. That had easily been the most terrifying moment of his entire life, remembered or not. Having her laid on the ground, barely awake, calling his name. The swelling of her arm, every hole in her body expelling blood because of the Curse, her hallucinations, her screaming. He had been paralyzed by terror, having her telling what to do. What an idiot. He couldn't even tend to her properly. Riko had told him to cut her arm in order for her to survive. He had nodded, not really accepting the situation as real. The bone crunched when he broke it with his strength, and that damned sound had been the one to put some sense into himself. That cursed moment had been the only time he had hurt her directly, and he just didn't have it in him to forgive himself. Not that he wanted to, anyway.

When she had blackened out, he simply lost it. He had cried, he had shouted, he had howled in pain. He had felt empty, desperate, lonely. He had been just a little kid mourning the death of his only friend in a cruel world. But then Nanachi had appeared, full of hope and compassion, and he had felt alive once more.

When they had faced Ozen, Reg thought he knew how terrifying a White Whistle could be. However, when they met The Lord of Dawn, he understood how incredibly wrong he had been in his assumptions. Yet another mistake, this one nearly costing his life.

And now, not even a day before, Riko had almost offered her eyes and legs to one of the Three Sages for the sake of Nanachi, and what had he been doing? Fooling around. He was so self-absorbed trying to find what he was that he had ignored her when she told him not to wander too far away. And so, he hadn't been able to help them.

Even so, Riko still smiled brightly at him like nothing had happened. That only made him feel guilty. Damn it all.

_&_

Later that day, when the light in the force field was beginning to fade, Riko returned to the inn where they slept. It had been a pleasant evening, but all her happy vibes went away the moment she saw Reg crouched in the far corner of their room, eyes red and puffy, deeply lost in thought.

She instantly knew what was up, though. Reg had been feeling down for a few days and, although she had reassured him that everything was alright with her, she knew better than to think he was easily convinced.

Riko approached the little robot carefully, but made sure to make some noise to alert him of her presence. He didn't look up.

She slid her back dawn the wall and nestled on his right shoulder until he met her gaze. Green irises met golden, and everything felt right again. Even in the depths of the Underworld, they had found home.

"Won't you tell me what this is all about, Reg?", she asks with a tiny voice, although she already knew.

"I... Riko, I'm sorry"

"What are you sorry for, silly?"

"For... everything." Words were difficult to form, but his head was swarming with unspoken feelings. "All I want is to protect you, but I keep failing."

Beside him, Riko smiled.

"Reg, you're wrong", she laughed out, and he looked down at her, confused. "If you don't believe me, I have proof."

She rolled up her left sleeve, and there it was. The big, offending scar that he caused her when trying to amputate her arm, and failed miserably. The cut had been so messy that the edges weren't able to meet, and even Nanachi's abilities couldn't fix the tissue. Her nerves were beyond repair, too. All because he had been trembling like a leaf in a storm.

"This", she said while caressing the marred skin "is a constant reminder that you were set to do anything you could to save my life. Reg. I couldn't ask for a better gift from a friend."

He looked at her, marveled by her words. She truly meant them. Of course, that was her way of doing things. Always that bright enthusiasm. He took his time studying her. She didn't wear her twin ponytails anymore. Instead, her hair was cut short right beneath her round ears. Usually, he would think that was his fault, too, for not being fast enough, strong enough. But the way she proudly set her jaw told another story.

She was strong on her own. Probably in a way he couldn't even begin to understand. But the light that was Riko never faltered, no matter the circumstances. There, in the small, nasty room, he understood.

They took care of each other.

He would have to grow stronger for her sake, but at least now he knew that she wouldn't break the moment he tore his eyes from her.

Deep inside, he had always known.

**Author's Note:**

> This story has been inspired by the great manga Made In Abyss, by Akihito Tsukushi. Every credit should go to him, his characters and his story. However, I do own my words.  
> Thanks for reading~!


End file.
